Hanukkah is only a month away, and volunteer organizations in Israel and abroad are thinking of how to cheer up children displaced from the south and the north of the country during the festival of lights.
More than 60 Jewish communities worldwide have joined forces in a campaign to ensure that every child receives at least one Hanukkah gift.
Jewish community members in the participating countries have been asked to buy one gift plus a beautiful Hanukkah card on which they are requested to write a message by hand, telling the child how much they care and how much they hope that the child will soon be home and doing all the normal things that he or she did before the war.
The card should be attached to the sealed container of the gift, but, for security reasons, the gift should not be wrapped. After it is checked in the drop-off centers in each country it will be wrapped and together with other gifts will be sent in a bulk cargo to Israel.
On the local scene, there is a gift registry in Jerusalem for both families and children. Gifts will be distributed via Chabad of Talbiya-Mamilla and the Shalva National Crisis Response Center, each of which will also accept gifts from overseas for distribution.
Donors who prefer to send money, should specify the type of gift they want the child to have, and should be aware that the money will be used only for the purpose of buying a gift for a child.
Light in the darkness
Hanukkah is one of the miracle festivals of the Jewish people, and it is hoped that the light of the Hanukkah miracle will extend way before Hanukkah to all who have been taken hostage by Hamas to be reunited with their families.
Notwithstanding the disturbing spike in antisemitism around the world, large posters bearing the faces of the hostages have been placed on the facades or near Jewish institutions around the globe, while various governments continue to pursue the goal of freeing the hostages.
It has been reported that in Jerusalem and Nazareth, some Christian children are fearful that the war may prevent Santa Claus from arriving this year.